I find the 2-columns layout way harder to read than the usual simpler layout.
It has its advantages in print, where the physical space is scarce, and you need the small font size. On the web, it adds an additional reading flow constraint (left-to-right-stop-in-the-middle, then up-to-down, then scroll-back-up-and-start-at-the-center), and the net gain is negative.
Cool, but hard to read:
Boring, but easier on my aging eyeballs:
(2nd screenshot style not definitive — just a quick in-browser hack to illustrate the point)
I find the 2-columns layout way harder to read than the usual simpler layout.
It has its advantages in print, where the physical space is scarce, and you need the small font size. On the web, it adds an additional reading flow constraint (left-to-right-stop-in-the-middle, then up-to-down, then scroll-back-up-and-start-at-the-center), and the net gain is negative.
Cool, but hard to read:
Boring, but easier on my aging eyeballs:
(2nd screenshot style not definitive — just a quick in-browser hack to illustrate the point)